MEDİNE MAMEDOĞLU

Amed – 33 women were killed in Turkey in August, according to the reports. In the last eight months, more than 30 women were killed every month; at least three women were killed per day. Every killed woman had been subjected to violence and got a protection order or a restraining order. Despite the protection orders and restraining orders, they were killed and this shows that the state does not fulfill its obligation to prevent femicide, to protect women from violence. Every day, women’s organizations and activists protest gender-based violence and femicide and call on women to organize themselves and use their right to self-defense against violence.

“The state does not fulfill its obligations”

Speaking about the killing of women despite the protection and restraining orders, sociologist Berivan Öztürk, General Coordinator of the Women's State of Solidarity Association (DAKAHDER), said that the state is obliged to protect its citizens’ right to life. Emphasizing that women are killed despite reporting violence to the police stations, Berivan Öztürk said, “Because the state does not fulfill its obligations.”

“Women are told, ‘We can only protect you at home’”

Berivan Öztürk pointed out that the women, who are subjected to violence or receive death threats, face another form of violence when they report violence. “Women are confined to their homes due to some protection measures, such as electronic handcuffs. Women are told, ‘Stay at home, you are safe there. Don’t go out because we can only protect you at home’. They are also told that when that man comes close to your house, we can prevent him. The police officers advise women to stay at home not to be subjected to violence.”

“Perpetrators know very well that they will be protected”

Stating that the state does not protect women due to their ideology, Berivan Öztürk pointed out that women struggling for justice and equality are subjected to police violence. “Women are attacked when they take to the streets to demand their fundamental rights. Whenever we protest against femicide, police attack us. The efforts to silence and intimidate women encourage men to inflict violence against women. In recent years, the killers say that they have no regrets although they brutally killed women and they know how many years they will be sentenced. This shows that they are not afraid of the state. The perpetrators are not afraid because they know very well that they will be protected. The women, who face threats, are told, ‘I will kill you and nothing will happen to me’ or ‘I will serve two years in prison and then I will be released’.”

“There is no law protecting women in Turkey”

“The current laws cannot protect women,” Berivan Öztürk said, “The Law No. 6284 is the Law to Protect the Family and Prevent Violence Against Women but it is not implemented. The Istanbul Convention is a treaty protecting women and LGBTI people; however, Turkey withdrew from it. Actually, there is no law protecting women in Turkey. As a slogan chanted by women says, ‘Men kill, the state protects them’. This slogan describes the situation of women in the country.”

“Women seek justice on social media”

Berivan Öztürk noted that Turkey, like other countries, does not implement deterrent and preventive measures to reduce the number of femicide cases. “Women seek justice on social media platforms, not at courts. Women use social media platforms to make abusive men to be arrested.”

“Women should know that they are not alone”

“Women should organize and unite against gender-based violence and femicide,” Berivan Öztürk said, “I believe in organized struggle. An organized struggle is a must for women. Women should know that they are not alone.”